Accidentally Charmed
by Faerie Fury
Summary: She found out purely by accident. Discontinued.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Charmed characters.

A/N: This is my first Charmed fanfic. So let me know how I did and what you think. ^_^

* * *

She found out purely by accident. A simple brush of her fingers across the back of his hand and her world crashed down around her. She couldn't breathe, couldn't see, nothing but his face. Why hadn't she known? She should have known.

"Phoebe?" Piper questioned her gently. "Are you ok?" She tried to smile at her eldest sister but she couldn't. She couldn't even pretend this time.

"No." she whispered tearfully.

"Aw, Sweetie…What did you see?" Piper asked pulling her sister into her arms holding her close as they sat on Piper's bed. It was like a dam had broke loose and all Phoebe could do was sob into her sister's shoulder. "It's ok. Sshhh…" Piper tried to soothe.

"No…it's not Piper…I…he…" She tried to tell her but couldn't. She heard the door to the bedroom creak open.

"Me and Henry were about to go." She heard Paige's voice drift towards her. She felt her younger sister sit on her other side placing a comforting hand on her back rubbing in small circles. "Is she going to be ok? She's been like this ever since she accidentally touched Wyatt's friend. Was it a premonition?" she asked Piper worriedly.

"I honestly don't know Paige. She won't say. More like she _can't _say. She just keeps crying." Piper answered back. "Do you want us to get Coop up here?" she directed the last question at the silently crying woman. Phoebe shook her head no and tried to speak again.

"He's my…" She took a deep breath. She needed to get this out. "He's my son."

"What?" was the exclaimed reaction from both her sisters.

"I saw it, I felt it, when I touched his hand." Phoebe pulled away from Piper so that she could look at both of her sisters. "It wasn't a premonition, more like a memory. His memory."

"Are you absolutely sure?" Paige had to ask. "I mean, how, why? It just doesn't make sense."

"I really don't know." Phoebe sighed and wiped the tears from her face. She had finally stopped crying and now her head hurt. "All I know is that he knew as soon as I touched him that _I _knew. That's why he left in such a hurry. I can't explain it Paige. I just _know._"

"Ok." Paige nodded in agreement. "I believe you."

"I need to find him!" Phoebe exclaimed standing from the bed. "I need to know…"

"Well, there is nothing we can do about it at this moment, Phoebe. Take your family home and try to not to think about it for now. We will discuss it later. Perhaps have Wyatt invite him over again? It's entirely up to you how you want to handle this." Piper stated.

"Exactly. Don't worry Phoebe we are all behind you no matter what." Paige assured. "Ok, well, I'm going to go. See you both later." She kissed both her sisters in farewell backing through the doorway and out of site.

"Thanks, Piper." Phoebe manages a smile at her elder sister. "I'll try my best to sleep." She said quietly leaving the eldest alone as she found her husband, Coop, and went home with her girls.

* * *

His face haunted Phoebe's dreams for weeks after coming into contact with him at Wyatt's sixteenth birthday party. Coop realizing something was wrong managed to pry the truth from her.

"Are you sure?" He asked concerned. "How? He's the same age as Wyatt."

"I really don't know how he is my son I just know that he is. I saw it, I _felt _it, when I touched him that time." Phoebe tried to make him understand. Coop smiled and kissed her forehead pulling her close as they settled down further into the covers of the bed.

"I believe you. What do you want to do about it?"

"I…want to know him. He knows. I could tell. Maybe he even knows how and why he is here." She sighed relaxing in to her husband's hold. "I managed to convince Wyatt to give me his contact information. Perhaps he has a family, perhaps not, but either way I want to be a part of his life as well. If he allows it that is." She smiled apologetically up at Coop. "Sorry, I know this must be hard to hear that your wife has another child. Are you ok?" she asked worriedly.

"I love you, Phoebe, more than anything. I also know that you love me too and you connecting with a child that you didn't know you had isn't going to change that." He kissed her gently. "Besides, now the girls have an older brother if he's willing to be one." All the pressure that she had been feeling suddenly lifted and she thanked the elders once again for sending her Coop. He was always so understanding, so caring, and not to mention excellent with the girls. She smiled as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

It was at least another week before Phoebe managed the courage to call him and even still she had to take several deep breaths before she could dial the number. Her heart seemed to pound harder and louder with each ring. Finally the rings were replaced by a voice.

"Hello?" a male voice answered. She almost lost her nerve right then and there. She took another breath.

"Hi…Garrett, this is Phoebe. Wyatt gave me your number." She started. She heard a sharp intake of breath.

"Oh." he murmured quietly.

"I was wondering if…you would like to have lunch with me some time?" She asked holding her breath waiting for an answer. Her heart started pounding again the longer he was silent on the phone. Then, after what seemed an eternity he spoke.

"I would like that. I would like that very much." She was filled with so much relief. She knew in that moment that everything was going to turn out just fine and she didn't need a premonition to tell her that.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Charmed.

Thanks to my beta Crime Scene Fairy! ^_^

Chapter 2

She fiddled aimlessly with her straw and started in on her second mango tea. Phoebe ran a hand through her short dark hair and resisted the urge to bite one of her manicured nails. She was waiting for Garrett at a nearby sandwich shop a couple blocks from the high school that he and Wyatt attended together. When she had arranged for this meeting she let him pick out the spot. She wanted him to be as comfortable as possible to ensure this could go smoothly. This would be the first time she and him truly met aside from the one time at Wyatt's party two weeks ago. A party that she was sure that she had ruined by having a near breakdown in the middle of it, but her nephew had assured her that most of the guest hadn't noticed and the ones that did weren't overly concerned once she had went upstairs to the bedroom.

She checked the watch on her left wrist. She was 15 minutes early. She had chosen a table outside because of the nice weather. She wondered what he would be like, would he be like her even though he didn't grow up with her? Wyatt had said she would like him even though she hadn't yet explained why she wanted to meet him. So far none of the children knew, only the adults. She wanted to keep it that way until she was sure he wanted to be a part of her life. When 3:00 pm rolled around he was right on time.

"Hello." He greeted as he slid into the seat across from her. She smiled brightly.

"Hey!" she greeted with a little more enthusiasm than was probably necessary. "Order what you like, this lunch date is on me, no arguments." She instructed and held back a small laugh when his cheeks flushed red in embarrassment. He nodded and smiled.

"Thank you." His voice was deep but very quiet. She looked him over as he ordered a glass of water to drink and a Rueben with extra sauerkraut. His hair was a dark brown almost black color and cut short with a slight spiked style. His skin was a healthy tan and he looked like he stayed outdoors more than indoors unlike herself. He was dressed in dark navy cargo pants with a black and blue striped polo shirt. His eyes were a bright blue. _His_ blue. She ordered a grilled chicken salad and another mango tea.

"You sure you only want water? Their flavored iced teas are actually very good." She commented.

"You're already paying for me so I got a water. It's free." He explained with a blush.

"If you want to drink something else, don't worry about it, just order it."

"I'm fine really. Thank you though."

"If you're sure."

"I am." He laughed and it warmed her heart. "Really." He assured. They sat in a comfortable silence for second before it started to turn slightly awkward. "Um…well…what exactly did you _see_ at Wyatt's party?" he asked and winced at how tactless it sounded. "Sorry." He apologized.

"No need to apologize, Garrett." She grinned. She cleared her throat before starting. "Well, I only touched you for a brief second but I saw you when you were younger, perhaps six maybe, and you were talking to a person I couldn't see. I couldn't hear what the person was saying but he or she was showing you a picture of me." She recounted a little uneasily. Now that she had said it out loud it made her seem that she was jumping to conclusions about this young man being her son. She knew that she wasn't but she didn't have much to go on to really convince anyone else otherwise either. She just _knew_ that he was. He didn't look surprised at her explanation as if he already knew what she would say.

"That's the same that I saw. I've never shared a vision with anyone before especially a memory of my own." Garrett said in wonder. "I think this would go easier if you just asked me what you wanted to know. I can try to answer to the best of my ability." He scratched his nose sheepishly. "Thank you." He said politely as the waitress brought their food. She waited until the waitress was gone before she spoke.

"I guess the obvious question would be…am I…your mother?" Phoebe asked hesitantly. She knew and she thought that he knew but what if he really didn't and this scared him away? He didn't look surprised.

"As far as I know, yes, you are my biological mother." He smiled.

"How though? Forgive me but…" She bit the inside of her cheek lightly. "I don't remember you or giving birth to you are anything like that." She tried to say as gently as possible so as not to offend him. Here he sighed.

"Do you want the long version or the short version?" he quipped with a playful smirk.

"Short version for now." She decided. "I'll save the long version for another day."

"Ok, well, technically I'm your and Cole's child, I was given a second chance at life, basically. After the Source was killed, the evil was separated from my soul and I was returned to my original form. Granted I didn't get a chance to be born yet so I guess original form as in what I was going to be." Garrett shrugged a broad shoulder. "That's how I understood it anyways. Cole only really explained it to me once and as you saw I was six. I didn't really understand it much." Her heart speed up. _Cole_?

"Cole? Is he alive?" Phoebe couldn't help but ask. Garrett's smile seemed to fade a bit.

"I don't think so, I'm not exactly sure. I've only ever seen him when I'm asleep or unconscious." He admitted. "Where ever he is, he was able to show me your picture. He told me all about you." He said warmly.

"How come I've never seen you before now?" She asked biting and chewing her food thoughtfully. "If I had known about you…"

"Well, You had a family. I had a family." He looked away from her. "I was content with how things were. I didn't see a need to seek you out."

"Trust me, I get it." She laughed. "I do." She emphasized. "So how old are you exactly? We assumed you were Wyatt's age." She decided not to dwell so much on the how or why and focus more on the here and now.

"Yeah, I'm 16. I'm older than him by only a month. I was born January 19, 2003. We've been friends since freshman year but we didn't really become close until this year."

"Tell me about your family." She sipped her tea contently starting to really relax. He seemed to brighten even more.

'Well, I'm an only child. I live with my mom and my dad lives in L.A. They separated when I was 10, but I go stay with my dad every summer. It's not bad. They were both really great to me." He had a distant look in his eye as if he were witnessing a fond memory. He focused on her again. "I was adopted by them when I was 2. I don't remember the orphanage at all, so I guess I was one of the luckier ones. What about you?" he asked and then blushed. "I mean, I saw that you had kids at the party." He added quietly. Now, it was her turn to brighten.

"Yes, I have three wonderful girls." She tried not to gush. "Ladybug, I mean, Cassidy, is my eldest, she's 13. Adelphie is 11 and Rowena is 7. They are going to love you! I can tell you that. Especially Adelphie she has always wanted a brother instead of sisters." Here she rolls her eyes. "She knows she wouldn't know what to do with herself without her sisters." He grinned at the joy that came over his mother's face as she talked about her girls.

"I would love to meet them." He agreed whole-heartedly.

The pair talked for another hour before Garrett had to be home. Phoebe learned that her son's full name was Garrett Connor Washington and he did in fact possess powers. He had premonitions like her but he only currently possessed retrocognition, oddly enough. He had yet to tap into the power of precognition. She offered to help train him with that. He had the ability to shimmer, superhuman strength, and could control energy balls. He told her that Cole had told him in theory how his powers worked and because Cole could only reach him in his dreams or in an unconscious state, they would practice mentally in his dreams. He only ever came across a demon once. Other than that the only abilities Garrett used were the ones he got from her and shimmering on occasion. He explained that his ability to see the past is the reason he wants to be a lawyer in the future. He wanted to be able to pick out the innocent from the guilty. Phoebe had to wonder if the real reason wasn't because Cole was a lawyer. She wondered if he knew that about his father. She found out that Cole used to come to him every night when he was younger but as he got older it became less frequent. She couldn't help the part of her that wondered if Cole could visit her too.

Phoebe met the mother that had raised her son when she dropped him off. Her name was Claire Washington and she was really nice and very open to the idea that Garrett would meet his biological family. In fact she had even suggested that they work something out with his father, Thomas, so that Garrett could split his time between Phoebe and Thomas' place during the summer months. Garrett had told Phoebe before hand that Claire didn't know about his other powers other than the premonitions. Instead of knowing that it was because he was half-witch she thought it was just a simple clairvoyant ability. Phoebe made sure not to let it slip, everyone knew she was the wrong Halliwell to keep a secret, but she welcomed Claire into her home. Phoebe wanted her to be apart of the family as well as Garrett.

"Thanks for today." Garrett said as she was leaving. "I really enjoyed it."

"It was my pleasure, Garrett." Phoebe squeezed his upper arm gently. "Next time I will introduce you to the rest of your family. I haven't told Wyatt that you're his cousin yet. I bet he will be thrilled. Unless you want to tell him?"

"No, I want it to be a surprise." He laughed that deep laugh of his. "I'm excited though."

"Until next time." Phoebe couldn't resist hugging him. "I'm so glad to have found you." She whispered.

"Me too." He whispered back, and with that she left. There was a smile on her face and a smile within her heart.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry this took so long. ^^;

Thanks to my beta Crime Scene Fairy as well. ^_^

* * *

Chapter 3

Phoebe hummed to herself as she stood in the Halliwell Manor's kitchen making finger foods. She was currently making mini Rueben sandwiches because she knew that was Garrett's favorite. Garrett was to be coming to the Manor today to meet the rest of the family officially as her son. Piper was all but too happy to host the get together at the house.

"Reuben sandwiches? Isn't that a little heavy?" said sister questioned with a quirk of her lips. She was wearing a simple apron and her long hair was tied back in a low ponytail so as not to get in her way as she helped Phoebe with the food.

"It's his favorite." Phoebe explained to Piper. "I can't help it. I keep wanting to make a good impression."

"Well, then you should have let me do all the cooking." Piper laughed. Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"Very funny."

"How come you guys get kitchen duty and I'm stuck babysitting nine kids?" Paige mock glared at her elder sisters as she entered the kitchen. "Which, I might add, only three of the nine are mine?"

'Well, let's see. I'm a chef, technically, Phoebe's a column writer and novelist," Piper started thoughtfully. "And you are a social worker. I wonder why we thought you of all people would be good with kids!" She widened her eyes dramatically and gasped.

"Yeah, yeah. I need to start charging by the hour," Paige muttered good-naturedly. "Well, let me get back in there. If I know those kids I know they are probably up to something by now." She quickly snatched a sandwich before dipping out of the kitchen.

"Paige!" Phoebe called after her in exasperation. "We won't have any food if people keep coming in here and eating it. Right, Leo?" she glared at the former Elder as he tried to sneak a sandwich.

"Uh…I was just going to…" He tried to think of an excuse. "Sorry," he finished with a smile. "I'll just wait and go help Paige with the kids," he murmured as he exited the kitchen.

"You need to lighten up, Phoebe," Piper told her. "You need to just relax. Everything is going to be fine. Wyatt likes him enough. I'm sure the others will too."

"You're right. Sorry." She gave her sister a sheepish grin. "I explained to the girls last night about Garrett being their brother so that the wouldn't be completely shocked by the news," she added.

"And? How did it go?" Piper asked stirring the iced tea. She tasted a bit and nodded in approval at the sweetness level.

"Well, Rowena and Adelphie took to the idea immediately." Phoebe smiled briefly before a small frown graced her face. "Cassidy on the other hand took a little convincing. Once I explained to her that he was sixteen and was born long before I had met Coop, she seemed to settle down a lot." Here she snorted. "As if I would cheat on Coop, but I do understand her concern." She smiled. "They're excited about meeting him."

"What I'm shocked about is that Rowena hasn't told the others about Garrett yet. She's about as good as you are at keeping secrets." Piper laughed. "She is your daughter, I tell you that."

"Definitely." Phoebe laughed.

It was around one in the afternoon when there was a knock at the door. Phoebe jumped up from the couch and rushed to the door.

"I got it!" she called over her shoulder. The five adult occupants of the room chuckled at her eagerness. Phoebe opened the door to reveal Garrett.

"Welcome!" she greeted giving him a quick hug.

"Hi," he greeted, hugging her back. "Mom decided not to stay but she'll come pick me up when I call her," he explained.

"Oh, ok." Phoebe nodded. "Perhaps she can meet everyone next time. Come in." She said stepping aside so that he could pass by her. "Everyone is in the parlor." She shut the door and followed behind him as he went into the room that he remembered Wyatt's party being held in. Phoebe took hold of his arm. "Everyone this is Garrett Washington. Most of you probably remember him from the party." She started and turned to Garrett. "Ok, starting from the left, that is my sister Piper and her husband Leo. You know Wyatt and Chris. There is their youngest, Melinda. That's my other sister, Paige, and her husband Henry. Their son Henry Jr. and the twins, Angela and Pandora." She paused briefly and smiled. "This is my husband Coop and our daughters, Cassidy, Adelphie, and Rowena. Your sisters." She finished with a flourish. Wyatt and Chris' jaws dropped.

"_Sisters_!" they both exclaimed. Garrett smirked.

"Surprise! I'm related to you dorks." He laughed. "How about that?" Wyatt and Chris both laughed as well. Phoebe released his arm gently.

"Now that we got that out of the way. You all mingle and I'm going to go bring out the food." Phoebe clapped her hands together, happy that things went smoothly enough. She turned and walked towards the kitchen as Garrett entered the parlor. She busied herself with placing the foods decoratively on the platter, and felt her husband come in the room before she heard him.

"What's up?" she quipped, turning and flashing him a grin.

"I was coming to help carry the food, is all." Coop smiled back at her, grabbing one of the platters. "I don't even need to be an empath to feel how happy you are," he added. "I'm glad." Phoebe walked towards him, giving him a quick peck on the lips.

"You taking this so well makes me happy," she confided in him as she turned to grab the other platter. She walked past him into the parlor and set the platter on the coffee table. "Here you go. Drinks and cups are in the kitchen. Help yourselves," she said as Coop set the other platter beside the first one.

"Food!" the younger children cheered, bee lining for the platter. Phoebe and Coop sat on the love seat. She sighed in content as she watched the children getting along.

"I'm glad you're back." Paige grinned. "Junior asked Garrett if Coop was his dad and when the kid said no we had to try and explain the concept of half siblings. Courtesy of every other adult in the room using me as an example." She pursed her lips. "Everyone seems to like him well enough at least, they have been asking a million and one questions since he sat down." Paige stood and stretched ruffling her twelve-year-old son's brown hair as she passed him on the way to the kitchen for something to drink.

"Mom!" the boy squawked in protest. His sisters giggled at him. "Hush, will ya?" he told them with a mild glare.

Garrett hid a smile behind his hand at the younger boy. His cousin. It would take a while to get used to suddenly having this much family. He didn't see much of his adoptive parents families like this. Of course the immediate family of his adoptive parents wasn't this large.

He sat next to Wyatt on the floor with Chris sitting on his other side. The other Halliwell and Matthews children were spread in front of them. Out of all the kids, he found his sister Rowena to be the most adorable. He figured it had to do with the fact that she was the youngest Halliwell there, being only seven years old. She looked up most to Pandora, the bolder and older one of the ten year old twins. Angela was quieter and was usually talked into doing things by her sister and brother. Contrary to how he acted, he found that Junior did really well in school even though he pretended not to. Prue, called by her middle name of Melinda, was close to his younger middle sister, Adelphie, because they were both eleven and in the same class at school. They sat huddled together even now whispering and giggling to one another. The only left was Cassidy, his third and eldest sister. She was the spitting image of Phoebe, from her expressive brown eyes to the curve of her nose and the shape of her lips. She tended to hover around Wyatt, Chris, and him because they were the oldest, Chris only being a year older. He figured it made her feel more grown up than her thirteen years.

"So are you going to be staying with us or something?" Cassie asked him. He shook his head no.

"No, I will visit though." He smirked. "I'm not an orphan you know." She blushed bright red.

"Sorry, that came out wrong," she mumbled. He chuckled.

"It's fine. I'm pretty sure it's not every day that you find out you have a brother," he told her gently. "You're still technically the oldest of the household. Don't worry." He winked at her.

Coop hid a grin overhearing his eldest daughter's concerns. He was proud of how well his girls took to suddenly having an older brother. It made him believe that he and Phoebe were doing something right in raising them. He found Garrett a rather charming young man, and Coop thought it would be great having him around. However, he felt uneasy around the sixteen year old. He hadn't told Phoebe because he knew it would hurt her but he couldn't help but feel it. He reasoned that deep down inside, he felt put out by the fact that this was a child that he did not share with his wife. Garrett was a reminder and evidence that there were other men before him. It was an irrational concern and he chastised himself for thinking it. He silently promised himself, as well as Phoebe, to give Garrett a fair chance.


End file.
